Keeping Tabs: Events in and around Boston

Wednesday

Feb 27, 2008 at 12:01 AMFeb 27, 2008 at 8:59 PM

This past Sunday I was live blogging the Academy Awards and when the short film category came up, I was lost. I hadn't seen or even heard of any of these films and had no commentary to offer. Fortunately the ICA is showing all the nominated films for the next couple of weekends. Unfortunately, it's too late for my commentary, but I'm still interested. And don't forget to check out our arts blog from time to time. That's where our crazy side lives.

Francis Ma

Captain Caveman: Men like TV and sports. If you hadjust figured that out, you could have had the longest-running solo play in Broadway history, “Defending the Caveman.” It had a recent run in our town a couple of months ago, but is back by popular demand because it’s still important (and funny) to point out the differences between men and women. Comedian Rob Becker wrote the play more than a decade ago after doing an informal study in anthropology, psychology and sociology. March 5-16, Wednesdays-Saturdays 8 p.m., Sundays 7 p.m. and matinees: Saturdays 5 p.m., Sundays 3 p.m. at the Stanford Calderwood Pavilion at the Boston Center for the Arts in the South End. Tickets: $54. Call 617-933-8600.

Lazy Covers: It’s a big deal when someone in indie rock does a covers album. There’s this universal expectation that the artist will find new meaning in a forgotten Sinatra tune. But in the case of Austin’s Ana Egge’s album “Lazy Days,” she takes songs from the Zombies, the Kinks and Arcade Fire that all tackle the important issue of laziness. The result: laid-back songs from a girl with a low voice. She plays Tuesday, March 4, 8 p.m. at Johnny D’s in Somerville. Tickets: $10. Call 617-776-2004.

Celebrate Women: Wait, you haven’t constantly been doing this? Time to make it up in one day. International Woman’s Day is upon us and to celebrate it properly, vocalist Sophia Bilides will present “Broadly Speaking: Women of the American Songbook.” Bilides offers observations from female songwriters, past and present, including Joni Mitchell, Babbie Green, Krisanthi Pappas, and Carol Hall. These are songs any woman of any age will be able to relate to. And any man who has the courage to attend may walk away with a little insight into the opposite sex. Saturday, March 8, 8 p.m. at the Blacksmith House, 56 Brattle Street in Cambridge. Tickets: $20. Call 617-547-6789.

Award-Nominated Fun: There’s a special shine when a film gets nominated for an Academy Award, the same way a suit seems different when it says “Armani” instead of “Property of Uncle Hank.” The ICA will present the Academy Award-nominated short films in two different sections: live action and animation. This is a rare opportunity to see these short films, most of which aren’t shown at a theater near you. And check the dates because this happens on different days. Live action: Feb. 28 at 7 p.m., March 2 at 3 p.m., and March 14 at 7 p.m. Animation: Feb. 29 at 7 p.m., March 2 at 1 p.m., and March 13 at 7 p.m. At the Institute of Contemporary Art in Boston. Tickets: $7-$9. Call 617-478-3100.

A Jazz and Banjo Salad: On paper, it looks weird. And maybe even in real life, seeing jazz keyboardist Chick Corea and banjoist Bela Fleck together on stage could be a little…weird. But aurally, the combined talents of these two men bring some of the most genre-bending and infectious music that instruments can make. Last year they joined forces for their first studio album together, “The Enchantment,” which won the Latin Grammy for Best Instrumental album. Don’t miss out and be prepared to enter a new musical dimension. Friday, Feb. 29, 8 p.m. at Symphony Hall in Boston. Tickets: $22.50-$45. Call 617-876-7777.

His World is Flat: One day, completely out of the blue, “a normal, everyday kid” wakes up to find that now he’s flat. Just as unique: He has the urge to sing. Families and curious hipsters can find out what happens to that boy in “The Musical Adventures of Flat Stanley.” Thanks to a bulletin board falling on him during the night, Stanley finds himself as flat as a letter, which he uses to his advantage by seeing the world in a big envelope, looking for a cure to his two-dimensional problem. Based on the popular Jeff Brown book. March 7-9, Friday 7 p.m., Saturday 11 a.m., 2 p.m., 5 p.m. and Sunday 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. at the Colonial Theatre in Boston. Tickets: $15-$40. Call 617-931-2787.

Reviving Klezmer: Somebody has to revive the traditional Jewish musical style of Klezmer. If not, it’ll die in the wasteland of forgotten genres like “ska.” The quartet Brave Old World does just that and offers an original program titled “Song of the Lodz Ghetto,” combining elements of Klezmer with classical music and jazz. The entire show will be in Yiddish, but with English supertitles (the translation will be on the top part of the stage). Fans of Klezmer should keep their ears open for Brave Old World’s arrangements of rare Jewish street and cabaret songs, the centerpiece of the show. March 8-9, Saturday 8 p.m., Sunday 2 p.m. at the Leventhal-Sidman Jewish Community Center in Newton. Tickets: $26-$28. Call 617-965-5226.